Sony Interactive Entertainment to acquire Haven Entertainment Studios

Sony Interactive Entertainment has entered into an agreement to acquire Haven Entertainment Studios, the Montreal-based developed studio founded by Jade Raymond, the companies announced. The acquisition cost was not disclosed.

Haven Entertainment Studios was originally founded in March 2021 with an investment from Sony Interactive Entertainment, and is led by a “premier team” of game creators with over a decade of experience collaborating on “some of the industry’s most popula games and franchises.” It currently staffs over 60 employees and growing.

The studio is currently working on a “new live service experience” for PlayStation “built upon a systemic and evolving world focused on delivering freedom, thrill, and playfulness.”

“Haven Studios is an emerging studio with an exceptional team of talent, and we’re delighted to welcome them into PlayStation as our first game development studio in Canada,” said Sony Interactive Entertainment president and CEO Jim Ryan in a press release. “The studio’s focus on creating an original AAA multiplayer game will not only flex the power of PlayStation 5, but will further expand upon the diverse catalog of gaming experiences that can only be found on PlayStation.”

PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst added, “We’ve had the privilege of working closely with the team at Haven Studios over the past year and have been extremely impressed with its growth and progress on its first project. Jade has built a world-class team with the creative and technical prowess necessary to deliver on such an ambitious project. We value the studio’s dedication to building a player-first, collaborative game environment that can last for generations and are thrilled to have them officially become a part of PlayStation Studios.”

Haven Entertainment Studios founder and CEO Jade Raymond said, “Joining PlayStation Studios provides Haven with the creative freedom and unparalleled support to focus on building the highest quality games. We’re excited to have the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from all of the exceptional PlayStation Studios teams. We intend to fully embrace the incredible capabilities of the PlayStation 5 to create new worlds that inspire players and allow them to connect in new ways.”

Post-acquisition, the day-to-day operations at Haven Entertainment Studios will continue to be run by its management team in close collaboration with PlayStation Studios’ leadership team.

Find a message from Jade Raymond on the acquisition below, via PlayStation Blog.

One year ago this month, we embarked on a journey to start Haven Studios with a small team and big ambitions. Our goal was to build a studio where we could make the kind of games we’ve always wanted to create—and games we’ve longed to play!

We’ve made amazing progress in a short time thanks to our talented, passionate team and their exceptional contributions. We established a culture at Haven grounded in kindness, adaptability and courage that unlocks creativity. Our first new IP for PlayStation is on track to deliver a AAA multiplayer experience with a vision to build a systemic and evolving world focused on freedom, thrill, and playfulness that will keep players entertained and engaged for years.

Today, the Haven team begins a new phase of our journey, as part of the PlayStation Studios family. Working with Hermen, Connie Booth and the team at PlayStation over the past year has been a career highlight. SIE is a supportive partner that truly understands the creative process and what it takes to make a blockbuster AAA game. They have empowered and encouraged us to bring our bold vision to life and make our dreams come true and we could not be more thrilled about this opportunity to strengthen our partnership.

As a SIE first-party studio, we will have the opportunity to collaborate with some of the world’s most renowned development teams, including studios like Guerrilla, Naughty Dog, Media Molecule, and Insomniac Games, the creators of games that have inspired us as players and developers for years. We’re excited to learn from these world-class studios, as well as the exceptional central creative, technology and marketing teams whose expertise will enable us to deliver even better games to players.

To our Haven team—a huge thank you. It’s been one of the most rewarding years of my career—and to the players out there, we can’t wait to share more. We’re just at the beginning of what is sure to be a wondrous adventure that will span generations.

Jade Raymond
CEO and Founder, Haven Studios